The experience of impaired QOL appears to depend on living alone, inability to return to work and pre-accidental comorbidity rather than on the injured body area or the severity of the injury. Duration of hospital or ICU stay is important to subsequent QOL, even if ISS or body region is not.

Some of the factors associated with relapse identified in the present study were non-compliance with medication, stress, inadequate social support and substance abuse. The poor outcome in patients with frequent relapses emphasises the need to reduce the occurrences of schizophrenic symptoms to provide a better quality of life. The 25% of patients dropping out of care soon after a relapse indicates that more should be done to engage these people in long-term treatment programs.

Psychological complaints seem to be an important and underestimated factor for a decreased QOL among severely injured patients.

No abstract